债务压顶：VMO2 接近牵手 Openreach 扩展光纤覆盖

FTTX Data Centers Satellite News Eurobites: VMO2 nears Openreach deal to expand fiber coverage – report Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Proximus' patchy Q3; Orange hooks up with Mistral AI; Google under fire in Finland. Paul Rainford , Assistant Editor, Europe , Light Reading October 30, 2026 3 Min Read (Source: Ascannio/Alamy Stock Photo) UK converged operator Virgin Media O2 is nearing a deal to use BT's Openreach wholesale fiber network to expand into areas of the country not covered by its own broadband network, according to a report in the Financial Times (paywall may apply). The potential deal has been prompted by concerns over VMO2's debt pile, which now totals ?22 billion (US$29.4 billion), says the report. People familiar with the matter quoted in the FT story also said that VMO2 was putting on hold its plan to upgrade its HFC cable network to fiber. And in related news, O2 is rolling out voice-call security technology from Hiya to its customers after what the operator says was a successful trial. Hiya's technology uses AI-assisted algorithms to monitor the network for nuisance callers attempting to perpetrate fraud. During the testing phase, O2 said it saw scammers repeatedly try to reach the same customers multiple times, seemingly unaware they were being blocked. Proximus' patchy Q3 Proximus Group's wholesale unit dragged down its third-quarter earnings somewhat, recording an 8.1% year-over-year decrease in revenue to ?55 million ($61.4 million). Underlying group EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) was down 2.0%, to ?461 million ($515 million), on revenue that was down 0.2% to ?1.53 billion ($1.70 billion). CEO Stijn Bijnens remained positive, saying he believed the Belgian company was well positioned to exploit opportunities presented in the burgeoning areas of satellite connectivity and AI agents. Orange hooks up with Mistral AI Orange Cyberdefense has hooked up with fellow French company Mistral AI to help build trust in sovereign AI. Orange Cyberdefense is being granted early access to a variant of the Mistral Large 4 , also known, apparently, as "Le Chonk." AI systems powered by Mistral Large 4 will gradually be integrated into services offered by Orange Cyberdefense to its customers. The initial work will focus on priority use cases, such as penetration testing and the exploration of attack scenarios. Google under fire in Finland Google is being investigated over what the authorities suspect is environmental damage caused by unauthorized groundworks carried out for the search giant's data center in Muhos, Finland. According to a YLE report , the Oulu Police Department is looking into the matter, having received information that there have been "irregularities and shortcomings" in drainage and water management at the construction site. (See Eurobites: Google tips ?13B into Finnish data center plan .) KPN buys Xelion Dutch operator KPN has acquired business communications software firm Xelion. Based in Delft, Xelion's software platform enables company employees to make calls, chat, video calls via WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams and CRM systems from a single app. Xelion will continue to operate from Delft as an independent part of KPN. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Eutelsat enjoys LEO boost Satellite operator Eutelsat has revealed that its mobile connectivity revenues were up 38.1% year-over-year in its fiscal first quarter, as revenues from its OneWeb low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellation continued to offset the decline in revenues from its geostationary (GEO) satellites. Total revenues for the first quarter stood at ?286 million ($319.5 million), down 2.4% on a reported basis. (See Eurobites: Eutelsat orders 340 more OneWeb LEO satellites .) Openreach gets tough on PSTN migration Openreach has issued a final warning to communications providers still using the copper-based PSTN as the January 2027 migration deadline draws closer. Openreach warns providers that if the migration has not taken place by the deadline their customers may be automatically migrated onto its Emergency Voice Access (EVAc) service which, says Openreach, is "not built to support the connectivity needs of a modern business." Eight years ago today… Eurobites reported that the then CEO of Telecom Italia, Amos Genish, said that there had been a "market failure" in European telecom but that the imminent launch of 5G services offered some hope of salvation for the sector. "The telcos are running out of steam financially and shareholders are voting with their feet. We cannot ignore this market failure," said Genish. Read more about: Europe About the Author Paul Rainford Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins. He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more. During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels. Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone. 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